HomeBrandsPayPalCheckout APIrate_limit_reached
P
rate_limit_reached
Moderate
PayPal · Checkout API
PayPal API rate limits were exceeded.
Quick Answer
Error code RATE_LIMIT_REACHED on your PayPal Checkout API means: PayPal API rate limits were exceeded.. This is usually fixable — see the step-by-step guide below.
Affected Models
Applies to all models
PAYPAL-LIVEPAYPAL-ORDERSPAYPAL-PAYOUTSPAYPAL-SANDBOXPAYPAL-SUBSPAYPAL-WEBHOOKS
Likely Causes
  1. Request throughput exceeded per-token, per-endpoint, or per-account rate budget.
  2. Burst traffic pattern lacks backoff and pacing controls under provider limits.
  3. Concurrent workers retried aggressively, amplifying throttling conditions.
How to Fix It
1
PayPal: Read response headers/body for retry window and current rate-limit counters.
2
Apply exponential backoff with jitter and centralize retry policy across workers.
3
Throttle batch jobs and fan-out workers to stay under documented request ceilings.
4
Cache idempotent reads and coalesce duplicate requests where possible.
5
Monitor throttling metrics and request quota increases if sustained traffic requires it.
Pro Tip
This fix requires some technical knowledge. If you're unsure about any step, consider contacting support or a qualified technician.
Related Error Codes
INSTRUMENT_DECLINEDPAYER_ACTION_REQUIREDTRANSACTION_REFUSEDDUPLICATE_TRANSACTIONVALIDATION_ERROR
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